Sebastian Tavarez, age 23, of 138 Beech St., Apt. 3, Manchester

NASHUA – The 23-year-old Manchester man accused of shooting another man in Nashua nearly a month ago has been ordered held on preventive detention pending an evidentiary hearing scheduled for 8 a.m. Thursday in Hillsborough County Superior Court South.

Sebastian Tavarez, of 138 Beech St., Apt. 3, was taken into custody this week and charged with one count each of first-degree assault involving a firearm, a Class A felony, and reckless conduct, a Class B felony, according to police.

Detectives had issued a warrant for Tavarez’s arrest following their investigation, which began on July 18, when officers were called to a reported shooting at a local residence, the address of which wasn’t provided.

Police said officers found a man suffering from a gunshot wound, and summoned an ambulance that transported him to a local hospital.

The man’s injuries weren’t considered life-threatening, police added.

The investigation led to the issuance of a warrant for Tavarez’s arrest on the first-degree assault charge. The other charge was added at the time of Tavarez’s arrest, police said.

Tavarez is no stranger to the criminal justice system, having been arrested several times going back to 2016 when he was charged with felony riot in Durham.

The charge ended up being dropped and the case closed, but Tavarez was arrested again in 2017, this time charged with three counts of simple assault and one count of theft, also in Durham.

He entered a plea deal with prosecutors, in which he was sentenced to suspended jail time on one simple assault charge and the theft charge. The other two assault charges were dropped as part of the deal.

In 2019, Tavarez was charged with theft by deception stemming from an alleged 2017 incident. The charge was later dismissed without prejudice.

In January, Tavarez posted $2,500 surety bail for a now 22-year-old man who was arrested in Manchester and charged with riot.

According to his case files, Tavarez is due in Hillsborough Superior Court North later this month; first for a bail hearing Aug. 23 then a competency hearing Aug. 25.

As for this week’s Nashua arrest, police didn’t elaborate on the circumstances surrounding the alleged shooting.

They do ask that anyone with any information on the incident to contact the department’s Crime Line at 589-1665.

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.

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